Montemayor quits as Cocofinance chairman

Former Agriculture Secretary Leonardo Montemayor has resigned as chairman of the United Coconut Planters Bank-Coconut Industry Investment Fund’s Finance and Development Corp. (Cocofinance), one of the companies established under the coconut levy funds.

Montemayor assumed the Cocofinance’s helm on Oct. 27, 2003 on the basis of a "desire letter" from President Arroyo that was transmitted by the Presidential Commission on Good Government (PCGG) to the Cocofinance board.

The PCGG supervises all sequestered assets and corporations, including Cocofinance and the other companies financed out of the various coconut levies, including the CIIF.

Montemayor is currently the president of the Federation of Free Farmers (FFF), which has called for the resignation of President Arroyo.

He served as President Arroyo’s first Agriculture Secretary in 2001-2002.

Montemayor said he resigned from Cocofinance "in order to be consistent with my stand vis-a-vis the national leadership."

He also expressed the hope that future decisions regarding Cocofinance "will be made on the basis of the best interests of our coconut farmers and farmworkers and of the industry as a whole."

Now with over P1 billion in funds, Cocofinance has undertaken micro-credit, capability-building and other development programs for some 200,000 small coconut farmers and farmworkers since its inception in 1994.